Apple Develops iPhone Game Controllers Under Beats Brand
Apple is reportedly building its own game controllers for iPhone under the Beats brand. The move would mark the company's first foray into traditional gaming input hardware, after years of relying on third-party accessories.
The controllers have been in development for over a year and are expected to carry Beats branding rather than Apple's name. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple sees this as a growing market and wants to be a part of it. Beats executives are leading the project's conception and engineering.
Internal code references found in Apple's software suggest that the controllers will include hardware components such as directional pads, dual thumbsticks, shoulder buttons, Home and Menu buttons, and analog triggers. The two controllers differ in design, with one including support for an accelerometer and gyroscope along with more advanced haptic feedback, suggesting a wireless motion-sensing design.
The presence of dedicated hardware plug-ins for each device rather than shared generic code has been cited as evidence that these are real products in active development. Apple's potential entry into the controller market comes as the company has built out software infrastructure to support serious mobile gaming, including its Game Center and Apple Arcade services.